Dairying in the Mackenzie - How far is too far?

When it comes to extremes we all have different limits.
And sometimes we have to reach those nasty edges to
appreciate they do exist.

Extremes have been reached with
the mega dairy farm planned for the Mackenzie Basin. A huge
industrial dairying project that’s seen 12 environmental
activists arrested and dragged off by police this
week.

The idea of restraining the expansion of New
Zealand’s virulent dairy industry is something the
country’s been grappling with since well before the
election.

If we don’t work it out soon our
international reputation is in trouble. Our clean green
image might transform into a slimy green one reminiscent of
the algal bloom in our rivers.

There’s been a growing
realisation, as an OECD report on New Zealand puts it, that
we are hitting our environmental limits for intensive
dairying.

Greenpeace believes we’ve already seriously
breached those limits as the country faces rampant water
pollution, rising climate emissions and now, degradation of
landscapes like the Mackenzie.

Sustainable agriculture
campaigner Gen Toop says "This dairy incursion into the
iconic and world renowned Mackenzie country is a major
threat to the environment and to the reputation of NZ’s
dairy industry in the international markets it relies
on."

And judging by the iconic pictures of New Zealand
whizzing around social media with the hashtag
#Savethemackenzie that is a clear and present danger.

But
maybe, just maybe there’s some grudging consensus that
we’ve stumbled over the hard edged limit for industrial
dairying - into the golden tussock lands of the
Mackenzie.

The last 24 hours has seen muted agreement from
unexpected quarters.

Nathan Guy former Agricultural
Minister under National went on the record saying it was a
"unfortunate" that the Mackenzie mega farm received its
first consents.

Mr Guy’s comments come after Fonterra,
the big kahuna of the dairy world, casually tweeted that it
too was not wildly in favour of the Mackenzie megafarm.
"We’d prefer not to see more dairy expansion in the
Mackenzie Basin"

The language is moderate but such a
statement would have been unthinkable this time last year.

Greenpeace says "Fonterra and other industry leaders need
to go further than just words, and actually get behind the
campaign to ban dairy conversions."

A small poll run by
The Country radio show with a large rural listenership
showed those against dairying in the Mackenzie vastly
outnumber those in favour 61 per cent to 39.

For the Feds,
that’s the Federated Farmers not the FBI, their spokesman
Chris Allen has indicated that having large numbers of cows
on the Mackenzie is not ideal:

"Because there are
biodiversity and landscape values to be considered, and I
know farmers who are opposed," Allen said. A number of
farmers have voiced that same opinion to Greenpeace.

Now
the environmental organisation is calling on the wider
agricultural industry to put their big person pants on and
come out against Mackenzie dairy expansion.

"Open Country
Dairy, Synlait and all the other dairy companies in New
Zealand urgently need to deal with this serious threat to
the international reputation of NZ’s dairy
industry."

Greenpeace is also calling on other players
Beef and Lamb and Horticulture NZ to stand up and be
counted.

"The whole primary industry’s reputation is on
the line here." says Toop. " Agricultural leaders and
companies across the spectrum should follow Fonterra’s
lead and publicly condemn new dairy expansion in the
Mackenzie."ENDS

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